


Never Let Your Guard Down

by tumantuke



Category: Senki Zesshou Symphogear
Genre: F/F, Romance, Sexual Content, Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-05
Updated: 2016-03-05
Packaged: 2018-05-24 23:13:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6170458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tumantuke/pseuds/tumantuke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Concerned by the fact that 2nd Division is facing a new group of Symphogear-wielding enemies, Tsubasa decides that Chris needs to relearn how to fight at close range. But she also has to deal with a whole host of confusing new feelings. Hibiki and Miku help.</p>
<p>Set during the early parts of Symphogear G. Sort of a followup to <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/6169933">Stars Fall</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never Let Your Guard Down

* * *

 

**1.**

**Yukine.**

To Tsubasa Kazanari, fighting is like dancing.

This is especially true for Gear wielders, whose power comes from the song of their heart.

And Tsubasa has been learning how to fight and sing since she was a little girl.

To live means to fight. To fight means to live.

And to sing means to live for something more than just fighting.

Kanade taught her that. Kanade - singer, warrior, partner, lover.

... which is why she can't help but be annoyed that Chris Yukine isn't taking their sparring sessions seriously.

"Focus, Yukine!"

Chris looks up just in time to catch Tsubasa's sword between her automatic hand crossbows. The impact buckles her knees. The floor beneath her, especially reinforced for Gear training, creaks in protest. The strain from blocking the blow means she's not ready for Tsubasa's followup - a scything leg sweep that knocks Chris's legs out from under her and lands her flat on her back. Gritting her teeth, she attempts to get to her feet, but stops - Tsubasa's sword is angled at her throat.

"That's enough!" bellows a voice from above. It's the Commander's, watching from the relative safety of the observation deck. "Nice work. Take a break."

Tsubasa shoulders her sword, shaking her head. "Never let your guard down."

"You're taking this way too seriously," Chris mutters.

Tsubasa rounds on the other girl, incensed. "There's no such thing as 'too serious'."

Chris has gotten to her feet and desynced from her Gear, dusting herself off. Despite herself Tsubasa can't help but notice the way her breasts shift under her shirt as she moves.

It's distracting.

"Yes there is. And anyway I don't see why I need to train close combat. I use  _guns_. I _shoot things_. Close combat is your thing. And the dummy's thing."

After all this time Tsubasa still finds it irritating that Chris categorically refuses to refer to either her or Hibiki by name. She masks the irritation with a grimace. She doesn't mask it well.

"Yukine," Tsubasa says. "Do you remember the second time we fought?"

"... no."

"Tachibana and I dominated you. In close combat. When you changed the Nehushtan for Ichaival, you became vulnerable at close range."

"I'm on your team now," chris says, waving a hand in dismissal. "You can leave the long-range artillery to me, just worry about yourselves."

"That's beside the point," Tsubasa says. "Those three girls we fought - all of them use devastating close range weaponry." Including Kanade's - including Gungnir, Tsubasa adds to herself silently. "What happens if one of them gets you alone?"

Chris laughs. "I'll shoot them!"

"You had a hard enough time shooting me," says Tsubasa. "And we don't know what their capabilities are."

"Then I'll shoot them harder."

"What if that's not enough?" Tsubasa says.

Chris falls silent. It's only then that Tsubasa realizes her voice has gotten loud enough that it's audible from across the training room.

She looks up, catches the Commander looking at them thoughtfully, arms folded across his chest. Ogawa is whispering something in his ear. When did Ogawa get there?

Stupid question. Ogawa is always there.

Time enough to deal with them later. Tsubasa takes Chris by the shoulders, trying to look the shorter girl in the eyes, but Chris doesn't seem to want to meet hers.

"Yukine. I will not lose you too," Tsubasa blurts out.

"W-what?" Chris says, flushing.

Tsubasa releases Chris, stepping back. What indeed.

She can feel the heat rising to her face too.

"What's gotten into you?" Chris says. She's still not looking at Tsubasa. "Hey?"

Tsubasa doesn't hear her. She leaves the training room as fast as she can, leaving behind only the faint scent of her hair.

 

* * *

  

**2.**

**Tachibana.**

 

"Oh, Tsubasa!"

Tsubasa turns to see Hibiki Tachibana, waving and smiling. She's rarely not smiling.

"The Commander sent me to look for you. He said you left the training room. You looked upset."

"I'm fine, Tachibana," Tsubasa says.

Hibiki takes that in for a second. Tsubasa can feel her staring.

She catches a glimpse of herself in the floor's reflective surface. There's a single strand of hair out of place, and a slight hint of redness in her face.

Thankfully, Hibiki doesn't take the time to point that out.

Instead, she takes Tsubasa's hand. "Want to sit down and talk for a second?"

Before Tsubasa can protest, Hibiki drags her to one of the couches 2nd Division has seen fit to line the hallways with.

Never let it be said that the Japanese government's money isn't put to good use.

Tsubasa sits there in silence for a moment, aware of Hibiki beaming at her. She's rarely not beaming.

"So, Tsubasa..."

"Yes, Tachibana?"

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Hibiki purses her lips. "Do you remember what you said to me? About not always having to be strong for other people?"

"Yes."

"This is one of those times."

Tsubasa laughs. "You're right. I'm sorry. How are you and Kohinata doing these days?"

"Huh?" says Hibiki.

"Now that you're, you know. Dating."

It's Hibiki's turn to laugh now. It's an airy, musical thing that betrays the depth of her happiness and love. "Honestly?"

"Yes," Tsubasa says, smiling too. She can't help it. Hibiki is, and always has been, infectious.

"We were already technically dating before, you know." Hibiki flushes in spite of herself. "It's just that now we do... the other stuff too."

"Other stuff?"

"Don't make me say it in public!" says Hibiki, beet-red.

"Oh," Tsubasa says.

"Anyway, didn't you and Kanade do 'that'?"

Once upon a time hearing Kanade's name would have sent a jagged spike of pain through Tsubasa's whole body. Once upon a time she would have (and once did) slapped Hibiki for even bringing her up.

But she's made her peace with what happened the day Kanade died. She's slain the monster of her anger and loss.

A lot has changed since she met Hibiki, Miku, and Chris.

Hearing Kanade's name now just brings up memories. Some of them sad. Most of them happy. All of them precious.

Unbidden, Chris's face floats into the whirl of emotions - her violet eyes, the way her long twin tails stubbornly refuse to cling to her body. After a moment of shock Tsubasa drives it back down.

Where did that come from?

And why does it keep happening?

She becomes aware of Hibiki poking her shoulder. "Tsubasa?"

"Sorry. I was thinking." _And I'm not sure what I was thinking of_ , she reflects.

She looks at Hibiki, a smile tinged with sadness on her face. "We didn't have a lot of time alone together. We spent a lot of it fighting, or getting ready to fight, or recovering from fighting. The life of the warrior can be a terrible thing."

"I know," Hibiki says. And she does, Tsubasa reflects, as well as I do. The life of the warrior nearly cost her Miku, twice.

"But the times we WERE alone together were beautiful. I remember, one time when we were on leave, we took our motorcycles out for a ride along the coast. We stopped on a cliff overlooking the sea. We could see the shipping and the birds for miles. We, uh, didn't come back for a few hours. We were busy. I remember when we came back, the Commander and Ogawa were rather pointedly ignoring the fact that we seemed out of breath, and had leaves and grass in our hair."

"Maybe that's what you need!" says Hibiki cheerily.

"What do you mean?"

"Some time alone. With whoever or whatever's bothering you."

Tsubasa digests that for a bit. "Maybe."

"And when it-" Hibiki is interrupted by her ringtone. "Uh oh. I was supposed to meet Miku and the girls for breakfast. I'm late!"

Tsubasa laughs. "Go on ahead. I have thinking to do."

"Good luck, Tsubasa!" Hibiki says. She gives Tsubasa a quick hug then dashes down the hallway, forgetting her bag.

As always, Tsubasa is surprised by how warm Hibiki is.

And how forgetful.

Now she'll have to track her down.

 

* * *

 

  
**3.**

**Kohinata.**

No luck.

Tsubasa has been waiting outside Hibiki's classroom for nearly forty minutes now and she hasn't shown up.

Presumably she's skipping class again.

Tsubasa sighs, shoulders Hibiki's bag again, and prepares to walk off. She's interrupted by the ringing of the bell.

_Perhaps_ , she thinks, _Tachibana was on time for class for once in her life, and actually showed up._

Tsubasa turns to await the flood of students, hoping to catch sight of Hibiki in the press.

She gets the next best thing.

"There you are!"

Tsubasa spots Miku Kohinata waving at her from the midst of the crowd.

She makes her way towards her, determinedly avoiding the usual low-key fawning a famous idol gets.

"Kohinata." She hands Miku the bag. "Tachibana left this with me earlier this morning."

Miku bows. "Thank you. I'm sorry she was so much trouble. She's been looking for it all day."

Tsubasa laughs. "Is that why she didn't go to class?"

"Yes. She went back to check our place. Knowing her, she's still looking."

"Well," Tsubasa says, "there it is. I'll be going now."

As Tsubasa turns to wade through the press of students, Miku steps up beside her.

"Wait," she says. "I'll go with you."

They walk in silence. Gradually the crowd thins out.

The new Lydian campus is much smaller than the one Ryouko Sakurai destroyed. It empties of students quickly.

Soon the only people left under the dappled shade of the trees are them, a few errant Tsubasa-stalkers, and a tall shadow wearing glasses and an inscrutable expression.

Tsubasa breaks the silence. "Did you want to talk about something?"

Miku nods. "Or maybe you did. Hibiki said you seemed down about something."

Tsubasa looks at her for a second. Although she considers Miku a friend, she's never spent much time with her.

On the other hand, she knows that between Hibiki and Miku, Miku is the more level headed one. And more removed from the situation.

And it's not as though she could talk to Ogawa or the Commander about this.

She thinks of Chris.

But talking to her about this is out of the question.

She _is_ the question.

"Kohinata," Tsubasa begins, then stops.

Unlike Hibiki, Miku is not one to pry. They walk in silence for a few minutes.

Tsubasa gathers herself. The words come out in a rush. "Do you think it's okay to stop loving someone?"

Miku is silent for a moment. "You still love Kanade, don't you?"

"Yes," says Tsubasa. "I think. These days my thoughts seem to be occupied with someone else."

And again Miku reminds her that she is not Hibiki.

"Is it Chris?"

Tsubasa looks away. "Maybe. How did you know?"

Miku laughs. "I guessed. Chris has been distracted lately too. And she keeps talking about you."

"She does?"

"Not directly. And not the way Hibiki or I would. She doesn't seem angry about you, though."

"Really? Yukine is always angry about something."

"I know," Miku says. "It's when she's not that you can tell what's bothering her is important."

Miku cocks her head to one side, considering the leaves falling from the schoolyard trees. "You were wondering if it was okay to stop loving someone."

"Yes."

"I think you're going about this from the wrong direction."

Once upon a time Tsubasa wouldn't even have considered that she might be wrong.

One more thing that's changed.

"Maybe," she says. "What are you saying?"

"I don't think you will ever stop loving Kanade," Miku says wistfully. "If I lost someone special, they would always hold a place in my heart. But that doesn't mean that has to be the only thing in your heart, I think."

"A few months ago, I thought Hibiki was... gone forever."

Tsubasa smiles. "Yukine and I were gone too, you know."

Miku laughs playfully. "I was sad about that as well. But you're my friend, not the love of my life."

Tsubasa laughs with her. It feels good to laugh.

Miku picks up a golden-brown leaf and plays with it idly. "She came back. She helped me through the pain and loss I'd felt when she was gone. I realized something then."

"What?" Tsubasa says.

"Seeing me in pain hurt Hibiki almost as much as I was hurting. And if Hibiki really had been gone, I don't think she would have wanted me to be that way for the rest of my life."

Tsubasa thinks about that for a moment.

"I didn't know her. But I believe Kanade really loved you. And she wouldn't have wanted you to be alone forever. I think to Kanade, a future where you were alone for the rest of your life would have been more painful than the thought of a future without you."

She tucks the leaf away in her bag. "Sometimes I think I would give anything to keep Hibiki by my side forever. Do anything. I would give it all up to create a world where she would never have to fight again, never have to risk dying just to save me and everyone else."

This is a side of Miku Tsubasa has never seen. There's a quiet intensity to her that causes Tsubasa to instinctively take caution. But it's gone in a flash, leaving Tsubasa wondering what she'd just sensed.

"But that's just selfishness. Hibiki saves people. Hibiki will always try to save people. I've come to accept that. And I've come to realize that I can't protect her by keeping her in a prison where she'll never be in danger. I love her, and that means letting her do what she does best. Because it makes her happy."

Miku turns to Tsubasa, a sad smile on her face. "I think you will always love Kanade. And I know Kanade will always love you, wherever she is now. But she would want you to be happy, as well."

The wind picks up, sending the fallen leaves into a rising spiral, sending the girls' hair whipping around them. There's a faint scent of something on the breeze.

They stand there quietly for a moment.

"You know, Kohinata, Tachibana is right."

"Hm?"

"You _are_ the smart one."

Miku laughs. "She just doesn't give herself enough credit."

The sound of shoes rapidly slapping against asphalt cuts into the moment. Hibiki rounds the corner, sweaty and out of breath.

"Miku!" she cries. "I couldn't find my bag. It wasn't under the bed. It wasn't in the living room. I even checked the balcony!"

"Calm down, Hibiki," Miku says. She hands her the bag. "Tsubasa brought it for you."

Hibiki turns, her eyes full of thanks, and prostrates herself. "I'm sorry! I should have asked you first. I can't believe I caused you trouble!"

Tsubasa laughs. "It wasn't any trouble, Tachibana. And Kohinata helped me figure something out."

"I'm glad!" Hibiki says. She reaches for Miku's hand. "Do you want to go get dinner with us? My treat. It's the least I can do."

"Maybe tomorrow," Tsubasa says. "I have something I need to deal with tonight."

She waves and walks off.

"Ogawa," she says. "Please call Yukine. Ask her to meet me in the park at 7."

Shinji Ogawa detaches himself from the shade of the tree in which he's been standing for the past half hour and begins to dial Chris's number.

"And please don't follow me tonight. We'll need to be alone."

He smiles that inscrutable smile of his. "Of course."

 

* * *

 

 

**4.**

**Yukine. Tonight.**

The wind rustles through the trees and the grass. It's like it has a voice of its own.

The park is dimly lit by the light of the full moon and the frankly inadequate streetlamps.

But then it's a government park. Apparently they spend all their funding on couches in secret headquarters, and not on making sure their private parks have enough light.

Still, Tsubasa thinks, it's beautiful.

It was the kind of night Kanade would have invited her out on.

Tsubasa closes her eyes for a moment, enjoying the feel of the breeze and the smell of nature, and the utter serenity of the now. She could do without the owls, though. The owls are annoying. She's not even sure why there are owls.

"So did you call me here to apologize?" Chris says.

Maybe the owls aren't that bad.

Tsubasa frowns. Why did she always have to go on the offensive?

"Apologize for what?"

"For earlier."

In spite of herself, Tsubasa gets irritated again. "I wasn't aware I had anything to apologize for."

Chris shrugs. "Then I have nothing to say."

She makes her way to leave.

"Yukine, wait." Tsubasa runs up to her and catches her by the sleeve. Chris freezes in place, turns slowly.

"What?"

"I need to talk to you," Tsubasa says.

"Do you?" Chris says. She seems flustered. "I didn't know you could talk about anything other than fighting."

Tsubasa can feel herself turning red. "I can talk about plenty of things other than fighting."

"Like what?"

"Singing."

"We're Symphogears," Chris snorts. "Singing IS fighting."

Tsubasa shakes her head and turns to leave, her blood boiling. "You were right, there's nothing to talk about."

She doesn't make it five feet before Chris's angry voice cuts the night air. "That's it? You're just going to walk away?"

"Yes. This was a mistake."

"What is 'this'?" Chris shouts.

Tsubasa whirls on her, still furious. "I don't know, Yukine. There, I said it. I don't know what this is."

"Huh." Chris smirks. "That makes two of us."

She walks up to Tsubasa warily, that smug half-smile still plastered firmly on her face. "We're going about this all wrong. We're not talkers. We're fighters. So I'll make a deal with you."

"What deal?"

Chris settles into a battle stance. "Let's fight. If I win, you tell me what's eating you."

Tsubasa sighs. Of all the irresponsible... "You're crazy."

"This whole thing is crazy," she says, refusing to relax.

Tsubasa looks at Chris - really looks at Chris - for the first time all night. There are unmistakable signs of distress on her face. She hasn't been sleeping well. And beneath her usual veneer of bravado, Tsubasa senses something unfamiliar. It feels like uncertainty.

"Okay," Tsubasa says. "Let's fight."

"Great," says Chris, her smirk grown into a full blown grin.

"But if I win?" Tsubasa snaps into her own form, the one her Uncle taught her. "You'll tell me what's bothering you."

"Deal," says Chris. "But you're not going to win."

Tsubasa smiles. "Prove it, Yukine."

And Chris tries.

She charges toward Tsubasa, swinging a massive overhead hook. Tsubasa parries it effortlessly, then kicks Chris's legs out from under her. She lands with an audible gasp as the breath rushes out of her.

"What are you doing, Yukine?" she says.

"Fighting you," Chris snarls, getting to her feet. She wastes no time in launching another wild attack.

Tsubasa sidesteps her blow and sends her sprawling with an elbow to the back. "This isn't fighting."

"No?" Chris springs up again and hurls herself at Tsubasa again. "What do you call THIS?"

This time Tsubasa doesn't even bother avoiding the attack. She catches the other girl's fist with one hand and uses her free hand to trap Chris in a hammerlock. "I'm not sure."

Chris stomps down, hard, forcing Tsubasa to step back in order to avoid her foot being crushed. Chris spins away and lets loose a vicious kick.

Tsubasa ducks it neatly. "Flailing, maybe?"

Chris follows with blow after blow. She might as well have tried to catch the wind. Tsubasa has too much height on her, too much reach, too much experience.

Tsubasa avoids each attack with the minimum of effort, then counters with a palm to the chest. Chris staggers backward, breathing heavily.

But she's not angry now. Her face is red with exertion, her snow-white hair is a tangled mess, and her shirt is drenched with sweat, but she's not angry.

There's a smile on her face. A real smile, not the smirks she's so fond of, the ones she uses to mask frustration and anger.

Tsubasa realizes she's smiling too.

"I think I know what this is," Chris says.

"Oh?"

"It's fun."

Tsubasa's smile only gets wider. "I think you're right."

"I'm still going to beat you."

"And now I think you're wrong," Tsubasa says.

"We'll decide it with this one." Chris shifts her feet, centering herself. "The deal is still on, right?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go."

Chris punctuates her words by flinging herself at Tsubasa one final time.

And like every time before it, Tsubasa avoids the attack, counters, and plants Chris flat on her back.

Instead of getting to her feet, Chris lies there, panting.

Tsubasa walks over to her, stretching a hand out to help her up. "Are you okay, Yukine?"

Chris doesn't answer. "Yukine?"

She reaches for Tsubasa's hand in lieu of an answer.

Tsubasa suddenly finds her hand trapped in a grip like iron. Chris hauls her down with all her strength and smashes her head right into Tsubasa's stomach.

She sinks to the ground, out of breath for the first time all night. Chris capitalizes quickly, leaping on top of Tsubasa and pinning her to the ground.

"Never..." she breathes triumphantly, "... let your guard down."

Tsubasa laughs as she tries to catch her breath. She manages to get a few words out. "You learned."

"Do I win?" says Chris, shifting her weight off Tsubasa's chest.

"Yes. Let's go sit down and talk." Tsubasa rubs her abdomen as she gets to her feet. "That hurt."

 

* * *

 

 

**5.**

**Yukine. Tonight. Part 2.**

There are things stronger than words.

The Commander, Tsubasa's Uncle, said that once or twice.

However she's not certain that he was talking about headbutts.

Tsubasa sits with her back against a tree that she carefully selected after making sure it wasn't Ogawa in disguise, her eyes closed, enjoying the feel of the bark.

Or perhaps not.

It's very rough bark.

Chris ambles over and plops down next to her. "That was rough," she says, stretching. Tsubasa cracks one eye open. Chris stretching has the pleasant effect of emphasizing her assets.

"So?" Chris says. "What's been bothering you?"

She's not expecting a straight answer, Tsubasa realizes. The Tsubasa Kazanari that Yukine knows rarely talks about her feelings. She prefers to let her deeds speak for themselves.

But Tsubasa might just be too tired for deeds right now. So words it is.

She eyes Chris, leans forward, and says one word.

"You."

"W-what?" Chris stammers, flushing again.

"We've been spending a lot of time together lately," Tsubasa says. "Not just in training or fighting, either. Around school, in general."

"Well, you're..." Chris pauses. "You're my friend. It only makes sense."

"It's nice to hear you say that," Tsubasa says. "Even if you still won't call me by my name."

Chris looks away for a second, seeming to consider the tree.

"Does that bother you too?"

Tsubasa sighs. "Yes, Yukine. Friends call each other by name."

"Do they, though?" Chris says. "Finé..."

Tsubasa sits up. Chris never talks about the woman who ruled her life for two years, the ancient being who nearly shattered human civilization, who tortured Chris and made her a weapon of hate and sorrow and anger in her mad quest for love and redemption...

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No," Chris said. "I have to talk about this with someone."

She looks Tsubasa in the eyes. "Finé said she was my friend. She said she loved me. She used my name over and over again. When she hurt me. When she did awful things with my body. When she used me. When she left me."

Chris laughs. "I used to be angrier about that. But in a twisted way, I understand her. She was sad, so she lashed out. She was hurt, so she hurt other people. She's a lot like how I used to be, before I met you and the old man and the dummy and her girlfriend."

The old man is Tsubasa's uncle, of course, who has jumped into the role of Chris's surrogate father with his customary glee and pomp.

"Only," Chris says, "I don't think I was ever strong or angry enough to destroy the moon. Anyway. Finé used my name a lot. It was just one more way she could control me. And I got to thinking. Is that what names are? Just a way people control each other?"

"Is that why you don't like using people's names?" Tsubasa says.

"I guess. Only the people special to me get nicknames."

Tsubasa is silent for a moment. "Am I not special to you?"

Chris blushes. "I think you are."

"How come I don't have a nickname yet?"

"I haven't figured out a good one."

Tsubasa leans in closer, smiles. "Friend is a good start."

"'Friend' sounds ridiculous," Chris says. "I can't stand in the middle of the hallway and say, 'Hey, Friend, let's go out and eat dinner, all friendly-like'! The girls at school would think I'm weird. Weirder than they already think I am." She looks away again. "And..."

"And?" asks Tsubasa.

"I don't think 'friend' is an accurate way to describe how I feel about you anymore."

Oh thank goodness, Tsubasa says to herself. I thought I was going to have to live up to the deal.

"And how-"

"Don't force it!" Chris shouts, flustered. "Give me a moment."

Tsubasa gives her a moment.

Then another one.

Then five.

"My head's all messed up around you," Chris says, breaking the silence. "At first I thought I was jealous. Everyone at school admires you so much, you know?"

Tsubasa knows. It actually kind of annoys her.

"They admire you too," Tsubasa says.

"No they don't. They just stare and whisper."

Tsubasa frowns. "Have you actually heard what they're saying? They're just wishing you would open up so they could be friends with you."

"Quiet. It doesn't matter. You're taller, and prettier, and you fight so well. I can blow up every Noise in a square kilometer in five seconds. But you could do the same without causing hundreds of thousands in property damage."

She pauses. "I've got better aim now, though. Been practicing."

"So I thought it was jealousy," she says. "But a few weeks ago, I realized it couldn't be. Because I wasn't angry when I was thinking about you. And I was thinking about you a lot. Even when I didn't want to think about you. Even when thinking about you had nothing to do with what I was actually doing. It started to be a real pain in the butt. And every time I thought of you I'd get this, this ball, in my stomach, like a knot of feelings and emotion that I had no idea what to do with. I hate it. I don't know what to do about it."

Tsubasa takes a deep breath. Now or never.

She reaches out and takes Chris's hand. Chris doesn't react, except to let her do so.

"I don't know either," she says.

"What?"

"You're always in my thoughts too. It's why I called you out here tonight."

Chris snickers. "You had your manager call me."

"Irrelevant. The point is I wanted to talk to you, deal with this problem. We can't afford doubt. Not with this new battle at hand. Doubt on the battlefield is death."

Tsubasa squeezes Chris's hand lightly. "And I'm not sure what I would do if you died."

"I know what I would do," says Chris. "I'd kill every last one of the bastards that killed you."

"I mean aside from that," Tsubasa says.

"Oh. Well, I'd feel pretty bad."

They sit there in silence, looking at each other by the light of the moon and the flickering glow of the streetlamps.

An owl hoots.

Now or never.

Tsubasa leans in even closer, eyes closed, and waits.

And waits.

And waits.

And opens her eyes.

"... what are you doing?" Chris says.

Tsubasa flushes. "I'm trying to do something about our problem, Yukine."

"Oh."

Tsubasa closes her eyes again.

This time Chris meets her halfway.

The kiss doesn't last more than a few seconds.

A few seconds of warmth and belonging.

It was different with Kanade.

Tsubasa opens her eyes.

"Did that work?" Tsubasa says.

"I think so," Chris says. "I feel lighter. The ball in my stomach's gone."

Chris leans into Tsubasa, pushing her against the tree, mouth pressed against hers.

Tsubasa realizes she's not, in fact, too tired for deeds.

It _was_  different with Kanade. Kanade always led, always knew what she was doing, always knew how to make Tsubasa feel special and loved and like she belonged.

Now Tsubasa has that responsibility.

Tsubasa places her hands on Chris's chest, feeling her breasts through her shirt.

That's different too.

Chris is actually so much bigger it's silly.

"Is this okay with you?" Tsubasa says.

"What do you mean?"

"That last person to touch you this way..."

Chris shakes her head, reaches a hand out to stroke Tsubasa's cheek. "Finé never touched me this way. She didn't know how to be gentle. All she knew was pain. So pain was what she shared. You're not Finé."

She pokes Tsubasa's breast experimentally and giggles, a high light sound that's so unlike Chris Tsubasa starts. "You're definitely not Finé."

"Is that a joke about my bust?" Tsubasa says in mock anger.

"Sorry," Chris says. "We're fighters, not talkers."

Tsubasa laughs and pulls Chris to her again. Even through her clothes, she can feel the electricity of their bodies making contact.

Undressing isn't even an option, anyway. There's no telling who might be watching.

Chris straddles Tsubasa's thigh. The thin cotton of her shorts might as well not be there. Tsubasa can feel every inch of her, every move she makes, the damp spot spreading as she slides gently up and down Tsubasa's leg.

"Are you... not wearing underwear?" Tsubasa says.

Chris pauses her motions long enough to answer. "I mean, are you?"

"What? Yes!"

Chris grins. "Your loss."

Tsubasa laughs. Oh, Yukine.

She folds Chris in her embrace, kissing her body through her shirt, as Chris tries her hardest to finish.

It becomes quickly apparent that she's going to need help.

Tsubasa slips a hand into Chris's shorts, parting her increasingly wet folds, and begins to stroke, remembering all the times Kanade had to help her finish.

It doesn't last long.

Chris lets out a muffled whimper as her climax hits her, then collapses on top of Tsubasa.

"Sorry," she whispers.

"For what?" Tsubasa asks.

"That I had all the fun."

Tsubasa strokes her head, idly playing with one of the long strands of hair that trail out behind Chris wherever she goes.

"Another time. We have to get back. They're going to wonder."

"They probably already know," Chris says.

"Probably."

Tsubasa gets to her feet and extends her hand to Chris again. "Don't headbutt me this time."

"I won't promise," Chris says, grinning.

It's nice to see her with something other than anger or sadness on her face.

Chris leans against Tsubasa as they make their way out of the park.

"This won't change too much, right?" Chris asks. "You won't get all protective over me?"

"I won't promise."

Chris laughs again.

"Have you figured out a nickname for me yet?" Tsubasa says.

Chris shakes her head. "No. But I'll think of something."

**Author's Note:**

> EPILOGUE: Later they fucked like 20 times in a barn


End file.
